Hoping to bolster their thin defensive line for the stretch run, the Jacksonville Jaguars have signed free agent Eddie Freeman, a two-year veteran released by the Kansas City Chiefs just before the start of the season.

The move comes in the wake of the loss of Rob Meier, who suffered a season-ending leg injury Sunday. Meier broke his left fibula on a low block by Minnesota center Cory Withrow and was placed on injured reserve. He is the second Jaguars defensive lineman, following starting end Paul Spicer, lost for the season because of dubious blocks that angered Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio.

Even before the injury to Meier, the Jaguars had been somewhat thin on the defensive front. Meier had started in eight of 11 games and had 33 tackles.

In addition to adding Freeman, the Jaguars re-signed return specialist David Allen, who appeared in 14 games for Jacksonville last season. Allen averaged 20.3 yards on 41 kickoff returns and 12.0 yards on 27 punt returns.

Jacksonville coaches hope that Freeman, who has been out of football since the Chiefs cut him on Sept. 5, can revive his career and provide some of the versatility Meier gave the team. In Freeman's two seasons with the Chiefs, the former Alabama-Birmingham star logged time at both end and tackle, in the kind of swing role envisioned for him by the Jaguars.

"I'm grateful to get a second chance," Freeman told The Associated Press. "I knew it was going to happen, but I just didn't know when it was going to happen."

Nose tackle Gilbert Brown, whom Green Bay released in March, also worked out with the team, but coaches and Jaguars officials were concerned over his lack of conditioning. Discussions about signing former Pro Bowl tackle Chester McGlockton, who last played with the New York Jets in 2003, did not move past the preliminary stage.

Freeman, 26, was a second-round pick in the 2002 draft. He appeared in 20 games in two seasons, registering 39 tackles, four sacks and two passes defended. Freeman lost his job in Kansas City, in part, because of a knee injury. That same injury caused him to fail an Arizona Cardinals physical exam in September, but Jaguars officials deem him to be healthy now.